Men’s Match Report – Page 22 – Hammersmith & Fulham RFC

Hammersmith and Fulham 4th XV v Old Streetonians 2nd XV
Saturday 11 November 2018
27-14

A grey and wet Hurlingham Park greeted the Hammers 4^th XV as they arrived ready for a crucial game against Old Streetonians, who were sitting one place above in the league table.

With the warm up done and a well observed minute silence for Remembrance Day completed, Matt Baddeley got the game under way with Hammers looking to apply some early pressure in the Old Streets half. Some very strong carrying up front was creating space around the field and Hammers were going through the phases well to continue moving forwards and into the Old Streets 22. When Matt Perry then spotted some space in behind the Old Streets defence, a well weighted box kick down the line allowed Kris Connor to race down the wing, gather and touch down giving Hammers the score their start had deserved. The conversion was missed, although touching down under the posts under no pressure would have been appreciated!

The Hammers forwards were enjoying a great start and this translated into the scrum were they were clearly the dominant pack. The front row of Jan Vermuton, Abe Knight and Mike Spurgeon nearly got what they deserved by pushing Old Street over but a knock-on frustratingly saw the opportunity disappear.

A turnover then led to a long kick down field, and Hammers, thinking the ball had bounced out, stopped playing. However the referee had not blown his whistle (and Hammers sub Chris Dale refused to flag!) and so the Old Streets winger raced up the wing, gathered and scored to give Old Streets a try completely against the run of play. A lesson in playing to the whistle all round!

This brought Old Street back into the game, and with some good direction from their scrum half it was their turn to play the rugby in the Hammers half. Some strong defence prevented them from scoring initially, but with the pressure mounting and getting out of their half proving tough for Hammers, the score eventually came which would see Old Street go into half time 12-5 to the good.

Some strong words from Will Parker and ‘Matt Kelly, mark 2’, Adam Nixon, ensured Hammers came out fired up for the second half, and Tim Le Breton immediately scythed through the defence to bring play into the Old Street half. Having eventually been turned over and a clearing kick taking play to just outside the 22, Hammers had a lineout and the chance to inflict some early damage to the scoreboard. What followed can only be described as ‘forwards porn’. A driving maul from outside the 22 all the way over the line, with skipper Parker gleefully touching down at the back! Le Breton successfully converted and Hammers were back to 12-12.

Hammers once again started going through the phases well and Jack Petchey and Will Symington were starting to come to the fore with some strong midfield carries. This created some space out wide and with some intricate hands, Kris Connor was over in the corner for his second try of the game.

With the momentum firmly in their favour, Hammers were determined to make it count and yet more strong work up front, coupled with some excellent hands saw Ruaridh Young, who had been carrying well all game, run a great support line to go over and put Hammers into a 22-14 lead.

A brilliant, long defensive set from Hammers in the middle of the pitch led to another turnover, and from the resulting scrum the ball was spread wide through the hands of Le Breton and Baddeley to Victor Alabrune, who had to gather well! Alabrune skinned a few men down the outside before cutting inside and feeding Young who crashed over for his second try.

That finished things off and saw Hammers get a well deserved victory, as well as the try bonus point.

Final score – 27-14.

Man of the match – Ruaridh Young. 2 tries and brilliant support running.
Tin Man – Chris Dale. For his honesty in not flagging the ball as out to allow the Old Streets first try! An honorable mention to JP for forgetting that a number 8 can pick up and touch down when over the try line!

HAC II 38 – 14 Hammers 4s

Hammers 4s travelled to the heart of the City of London to play HAC at the fabled Finsbury Barracks Ground – one of, if not the most valuable pieces of land used for playing rugby in the world. The setting in amongst the skyscrapers and trappings of military heritage seemed to have a positive effect on the squad who gathered for an energetic warm up and looked keen and set to take the field.

Come kick off, the Hammers suffered an immediate setback when Alex ‘The Greek’ the side’s most renowned ball carrier took the ball up in midfield but in the course of taking contact and recycling the ball sustained an injury from a stray elbow evidently from a fellow prop. The result was a broken nose that prevented any further participation in the game.

Despite losing one of the front re contingent, the scrum was providing a solid platform in the early stages with Chris Hall propping at loose head – a far cry from his usual role, exploiting the open spaces out wide.

Despite some success in the set piece and some encouraging phase play, HAC were able to make inroads through their big ball carriers in midfield and in the tight exchanges, particularly effective on the inside ball. Hammers defence freaked and was eventually breached out wide . A second lapse in defence then compounded some unforced handing errors and enabled the hosts to cross again just before half time.

By this time Hammers we’re down to 14 men after a scrum failed to set safely and stand-in prop Chris Hall fell awkwardly, suffering a nasty shoulder injury, the full extent of which only became apparent later. Despite having made provision for a front row injury the ‘letter of the law’ was applied, meaning that the game reverted to uncontested scrums with Hammers forced to play the remainder of the game a man down. It was an unfortunate but significant blow to the side, particularly given that Hammers at worst had parity in the scrums and took no advantage from going uncontested.

Despite some notable carriers from lock Benji Reid, centre Ollie Brothwood and skipper Tilbrook, the 4s went in 12-0 down at the turnaround. Despite the injuries and being a man light, there was a positive feeling amongst the squad who had generally held their own without seemingly getting out of second gear. However, it seemed the hosts also had fears they hadn’t used and they showed some fine handling skills in the early exchanges of the second half, exploiting space out wide and scoring a third try.

Hammers then hit back with some good work of their own, putting together a number of phases before good hands in the back line put centre Oli Scholes in space and through for a run to the line. With both sides now playing with some freedom, the game opened up and the home side ultimately took advantage, firstly making the most of an interception and again showing the competence in the back line before crossing on the right wing.

With the result no longer in doubt it would have been easy for heads to drop, but it was encouraging to see the Hammers take up the challenge of chasing bonus points. A fine try followed using the same formula as before with patient forward play followed by good hands in the backs. This time Chris Jager went through the gap created in the HAC defence to score a fine consolation. It was well deserved but ultimately not enough, as the hosts ruthlessly exploited the ambition shown by the Hammers in chasing further scores. The game finished with another interception by an HAC back, to put some deserved gloss on the score line.

Overall, a disappointing result and a below-par performance from the 4s who had gone into the game full of confidence and on the back of an encouraging run of recent form. Nonetheless, and not for the first time, the effort and commitment of the group, particularly when down to 14 men provides plenty of encouragement particularly with some influential figures (including regular Captain Will Parker), set for a welcome return next week.

Hammers 4s v Old Streetonians – Match Report

Hammers 4s v HAC – Match Report